Muslims Protest Threat To Raze Mosque In South Russia

April 10, 2006 17:50 GMT

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Muslims Protest Threat To Raze Mosque In South Russia

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(RFE/RL)
April 10, 2006 -- A small group of Muslims and rights activists gathered today outside Russian government headquarters in Moscow to protest the threatened destruction of a mosque being built in the southern city of Astrakhan.

Regional officials say the partially constructed mosque presents a danger because it is close to high-voltage electricity lines.

But protesters said authorities are worried the mosque -- which is situated on a major road leading from the Astrakhan airport into the city -- occupies too prominent a location.

Half of the 1.1 million inhabitants of Astrakhan Province are Muslim.

The threat to raze the mosque has heightened concerns among Muslims about a state-sanctioned crackdown on minority religions.

(AP, Interfax)

Russia's Changing Face

Russia's Changing Face

A mosque in Baksan, in the Russian Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria (RFE/RL)

THE COMING MUSLIM MAJORITY: On February 28, Russia expert PAUL GOBLE, vice dean of social sciences and humanities at Concordia-Audentes University in Tallinn, Estonia, gave a briefing at RFE/RL's Washington office. Goble said ethographers predict Russia will have a Muslim majority "within our lifetime." Since 1989, Russia's Muslim population has increased by 40 percent, Goble said, rising to some 25 million self-declared Muslims. He said 2.5 million to 3.5 million Muslims now live in Moscow, gving Moscow the largest Muslim population of any city in Europe. Russia today has more than 8,000 mosques, up from just 300 in 1991. By 2010, experts predict, some 40 percent of Russian military conscripts will be Muslims. Goble noted that these changes have been accompanied by a "rising tide" of anti-Muslim prejudice. Public-opinion surveys reveal that up to "70 percent of ethnic Russians" express sympathy with xenophobic slogans. Goble warned that heavy-handed state efforts to "contain Islam" could backfire and cause groups to move underground, "radicalizing people who are not yet radicalized."